Railway wheel pilot



Jan. 29, 1929. 1,700,645

' E E. RITENQUR RAILWAY WHEEL PILOT Filed m 12, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l Ear-1 E.R1Tennur v INYENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

Jan. 29, 1929. 1,700,645

E. E. RITENOUR v RAILWAY WHEEL PILOT Filed July 12, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mgr- INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

Patented Jan. 29, 1229. i

if if v j means air series; 1

EARL E. RITENO'UR, OF ALLIANCE, NEBRASKA.

RAILWAY WHEEL PILOT.

Application filed m 12,

This invention relates to improvements in wheel pilots particularly well adapted for use upon railway trucks in advance of the wheels thereof overhanging the trackway, in an etficient relation, and adapted to clear the track of obstructions which sometimes fall thereon, such as bolts, nuts, stones and the like; the improved wheel pilot being suit-- ably positioned as a safety factor in throwing' aside persons, live stock, and the like.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of an improved wheel guard or pilot adapted to bemounted upon a r ,ilway truck, and entirely by the frame thereof, so that the same will move with the frame, and

thus avoiding any connection with the body frame to be mounted on the truck.

A further object of this invention is the provision of an improved wheel guard or wheel pilot adapted to be used upon railway trucks, either as an attachment or as an integral part of the truck construction; the same including means to deflect human beings from the wheels of the truck.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent during the course of the following detailed description.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughoutthe several views.

' Figure 1 is a fragmentary View of a rail- 'ay coach, showing more particularly truck thereof, with the improvedwheel pilot or guard connected therewith in a detachable relation, as an attachment.

Figure 2 is an end elevation of the improved wheel guard or pilot.

Figure 3 is a plan view of one of the improved wheel guards or pilots.

Figure -l a view of a special bolt construction used in mounting the wheel guard or pilot upon its supporting framework in an easily and quickly attachable relation.

Figure 5 is a view illustrating the use of the wheel guard or pilot,'as a permanent part of a truck frame casting. I

Figure 6 is an end View of the improved wheel guard upon the casting of the frame ofFigure' 5. I

Figure 7 is a plan view of'one of the wheel guards or pilots vofthe form of invention vshown in Figure 5.

In the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration are shown preferred and mod 1928. Serial No, 292,297..

ified forms of the invention, the letter A may generally designate that ty )e of wheel guard which is adapted to be used asan attachment upon existing types of trucksB. As afeature within the scope of this invention, it is int-ended to use aform of wheel pilot or ard C possessing some of the charac teristics of the form of wheel guard A,'but adapted to be installed as a and fixture of atruck D.v

Referring to the form ofwheel uardor pilot which is used as an attachment upon ting types of trucks, such as shown in Figure 1, the truck B shown therein is analogous to the type manufactured by the permanent part Standard Car Truck Company, and it ineludes the side frame 1,0,.supporting journal boxes 11' and 12 at each end thereof, and between the ends supporting a' spring bOX 12;

wherein springs '13 resiliently support a bolster 14 upon. which the frames 15 of the car E are resiliently supported in the usual. manner. The journal boxes 11 and 12 are supported upon the upper and low 1 fr me pieces of the frame 10,-by means of bolts 17, shown in Figure 1 of the drz-iwings, and which bolts are also used in mounting the pilot or guard A. i i

'The attachment A is adapted to be used at each end of the truck, for each of the wheels 20. These wheel guards or pilots consist of frame pieces 21 and 22. The frame part 2-1 is of V-shape formation including divergent legs'26 and 26? and having a barrel 29 at the meeting ends, and at their opposite ends having attaching 23 and 23 disposed above and below the journal boxes and se cured to the said journal box-es and to the respective end of the frame B by .the bolts 17. The frame piec 22 has a guard supporting arm 27 and an attaching leg 24; thelatter being secured below the journal box by said bolts 17. The portions 26 and 27 are bent downwardlyat an acute angle to the attaching portions 23 and 24; the portion 26 being bent downwardly to a greater degree than the portion '27. The lower end of the arm27 has an eye or barrel 29. Supporting pins '35, shown in Figure 4, each have I an enlarged cylindrical shaped body portion 37, with'a reduced end extension 30 at one end thereof and a reduced extension 38 extending axially from the opposite end thereof. The portions 87 are held together by a connecting web38. It is tobe noted from Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings that the supporting pieces 21 and 22 parallel the plane of the adjacent wheel 20, and the supporting pins 35 extend transversely to the plane of the wheel and towards the wheel, for supporting the guard proper 40 over the track t1, and immediately in the plane of and hcing provided with apertured sleeves or barrels 4-8 which receive th-erethrough the reduced ends 38 of the supporting pins or members 35.

In order that the wheel guard body 40 may be quickly detached from its supporting frame pieces 21 and 22, the ends of the pins are formed to receive washers 5O thereover and cotter pins 51. Such arrangement permits of the pilot body being quickly removed if the car truck should become derailed, and permitting use of a re-railerwithout interference upon the part of the pilot body. It is obvious that the pilot body may quickly be replaced after the truck has been ire-railed.

The V-shape of thebody permits of some resiliency in event an object of considerable weight, such as a human being, should be received thereon, and enabling the same to have its apex 46 pressed to engage the top of the rail, and thus preventing the person from being caught between the apex and the top edge of the rail. It is to be noted that the pilot body 4-0 is of the same width as the tread of the wheel and overlaps slightly beyond the side edges of the track crown surface.

An important feature is the factthat the frame member 21 together with the top arm 4-5 of the wheel pilot or guard 40 slopes down wardly, so that if a person in attempting to place his foot on the step 60 of the car E, should miss the same, the foot would be dcflected downwardly over the wheel pilot and laterally of the car wheel.

In the modified form of invention shown in Figure 5, the truck 1) is of the general type manufactured by The Bettendo-rf CO111- pany, and it includes the side frame plate 65, having journal boxes 66 at opposite ends thereof, preferably integral therewith, although they may be detachable in the frame plate. The frame plate-65 between the journal boxes slidably supports the bolster 67 upon springs 68, and the car frame 69 rests upon the bolster for vertical movement. Preferably cast integral with each of the side plates 65 are extensions 69 and 70 at opposite ends of the frame plate, beyond the journal boxes 66. which provide means integral with the plate 65 for supporting the wheel guards 75, which are of exactly the name structure as the wheel guards 40 above described for the preferred form of invention A. The frame extensions 69 and'l'O are provided with upper and lower apertures and 81, at the-free ends-thereof, adapted to receive special supporting pins 82 and 83 respectively; said supporting pins 82 and 83 respectively conformlng in shape to the pinsv extensions 69 and 70 by washers and cotter pins 85. The wheel guards or pilot bodies 75 are of course of ii-shaped formation, including arms and 91 connected at an apex 92, and at their free ends being provided with sleeves for receiving the other and longer spindles of the supporting pins 82 and 83 as shown in the crawings. In other respects the wheel guard and pilot body 7 5 may be considered as having the same characteristics as the pilot body 40 above described.

From the foregoing description of, this invention it is apparent that a novel type of wheel pilot or guard has been provided for use in connection with railway rolling stock, I

more particularly adapted to be positioned in a durable and efficient relation, and entire ly supported by the truck of the railway car, coach or the like, in such manner that without being cumbersome and objectionable the improved wheel pilot will perform its function of removing obstructions from the tracks, 'efi icien'tly, and expeditlously. An

important feature is the fact that the pilot body in width is about the same as the width of the track, in contradistinction to cumbertilt some plows and the like which I understandf have heretofore been provided for removing snow from tracks.

Various changes in the shape, size, and arrangement of parts may be made to the forms of invention herein shown and described,

without departingfron'i the spirit of the in-' 3. In wheel guard apparatus for railway trucks the combination of, a truck frame, wheels supported by the truck frame, wheel guards, frame extensions connected with the the truck frame at the outer sides of the wheel and extending beyond the truck frame alongside of said wheels, and supporting pins connected with the frame extensions extending laterally towards the wheels in advance thereof and at their free ends supporting the wheel guards in a position in advance of the respective wheels.

4:. In wheel guard means for railway trucks the combination of atruck frame, Wheels rotatably supported by the truck frame, a frame extension carried by the frame and extending beyond and alongside of the wheels, right angled supporting pins connected with the frameextensions and extending towards and in advance of the wheels, and wheel guards connected in a detachable relation at the free ends of the supporting pins in the plane of the wheels and in advance thereof.

5. In wheel guarding apparatus for railway trucks the combination of a truck frame, a journal box supported by the truck frame, a wheel journaled in the journal box, said frame having an extension beyond the journal box, a transverse pin detachably carried by the free end of the frame extension, and a wheel guard detachably connected at the opposite end of the pin in advance of and within the plane of the wheel.

6. In apparatus of the class described a frame extension having a pair of openings therein, a pair of pins including enlarged intermediate body portions and reduced ends, the reduced ends of each of the pins having a detachable connection in the openings of said frame extension so as to project transverse to the frame extension, and a substantially V-shaped wheel guard comprising arms in V-shaped relation having the free ends thereof apertured for receiving the other reduced ends of said pins in a detachable ree I lation.

7. As an article of manufacture a wheel guard attachment for railway trucks comprising a substantially V-shaped guard having a pair of openings-transversely therethrough, and supporting pins detachably mounted in each of said openings transverse to the plane of the guard body.

8. In a wheel guard for railway trucks the combination of a truck frame, wheels supported by the truck frame, a wheel guard, pins for supporting the wheel guard upon the truck frame, and cotter pins for detachably holding the wheel guard against displacement from said pins.

9. In wheel guard apparatus for railway trucks the combination of a truck frame having an aperture therein, a supporting pin including an intermediate enlarged body with reduced ends, one of said ends being adapted 0t lit in said opening of the truck frame, a cotter pin engageable insaid reduced end for holding the pin on the frame, a wheel guard having an opening therein for receiving other reduced end of the pin, and a second cotter pin associated with the last mentioned reduced end of the pin for holding the wheel guard in place upon said pin, whereby the wheel guard and frame are at opposite sides of the enlarged body ofsaid pin to support the wheel guard in a plane laterally offset from'the truck frame.

10. As an article of manufacture an attachment for railway trucks comprising a,

pair of supporting arms, means to attach the supporting arms at ends thereof to a railway truck frame, and a substantially V-shaped wheel guard having means to detachablyconnect the spacedends of the same to the free ends of both of said arms.

11. In an attachment for railway trucks the combination of a pair of supporting frame members, bolt means for attaching them at similar ends to the truck frame so that the members will extendbeyond an end of the truck frame, the extending ends of the members having the free ends thereof transversely apertured, supporting pins detachably connected in said apertured ends of the members in right angled relation with respect to said members, and a substantially V-shaped wheel guard having apertured ends detachably su'p- 1 ported on the opposite ends of said pins .to

support the wheel guard in a plane offsetv from the plane in which the first mentioned members lie.

12. In an attachment for railway trucks the combination of a pair of supporting frame members, one of said members being of substantially V-shaped formation and having an eye at the meeting ends thereof and attaching arms at the other ends thereof, the other frame member having a body portion with an attaching end and an eye at the opposite end from the attaching end, bolts connected in said eyes of the frame members, a brace connected between said bolts, and a substantially V-shaped wheel guard connected with said 

